Witnesses saw Atio with Solano a day before he was found dead, MPD says

Police on Thursday said they have witnesses who could testify that hazing victim Horacio "Atio" Castillo III was with principal suspect John Paul Solano a day before he was found dead, according to a report on News To Go.

Solano and two others identified as Ralph Trangia and Antonio Trangia are being considered by the police as suspects in the death of Castillo, a freshman law student at the University of Santo Tomas (UST).

"Mayroon na po tayong mga testigong nagsasabi na siya (Castillo) po ay kasama nila John Paul Solano at iba pang mga officers ng fraternity nung araw na siya po ay dinala sa UST at natagpuang patay sa sumunod na araw," said Chief Superintendent Joel Coronel, head of the Manila Police District.

On Wednesday, Coronel said they consider Solano as one of the main suspects after discovering that he gave "false statements" to the police. 

Coronel, in the News To Go interview, said Solano may face criminal charges of obstruction of justice or perjury for lying to investigators when he claimed to have found Castillo on the street in Tondo on Sunday morning, even though CCTV footage and statements from village officials show no body was found there on that date.

Meanwhile, the MPD chief said they have already notified the International Police (INTERPOL) regarding Trangia, who according to the Bureau of Immigration has already left the country.

"Pinaalam na rin sa INTERPOL offices para maglabas ng INTERPOL Red Notice para ipagbigay alam na siya ay hinahanap natin kaugnay sa pagkamatay po ni Horacio Castillo," Coronel said.

The BI said Trangia took a flight bound for Taipei on Tuesday, a day before Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II ordered immigration personnel to be on the lookout for him and 15 other members of the Aegis Juris fraternity linked to Castillo's death. 

As for other names on the lookout list, the BI said they appear "to still be in the country" or there is no enough information on their identity "to ascertain if they are the same person as the one appearing in BI records." —Joseph Tristan Roxas/KBK, GMA News